A silver stain protocol for proteins yielding high resolution and transparent background in sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gels.

A simple, sensitive silver staining method for sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis has been developed which yields high resolution of proteins with a transparent background. The method includes the incorporation of a water wash after a short fixation step in ethanol/ acetic acid and prior to glutaraldehyde cross-linking, which appears to be necessary for the high resolution staining of protein bands and the low background staining.